[12] At Corll's home, Corll and Henley devised a ruse in which they would lure a youth to Corll's home and Henley would then cuff his hands behind his back, release himself, then con the victim into placing the handcuffs upon himself. Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr. is a killer. The State of Texas presented a total of 82 pieces of evidence . Brooks accompanied Henley and the police to High Island Beach on Aug. 10, 1973, where they recovered another six bodies. Im glad now Im not hiding it, waiting, and Dean aint out there killing little kids. All That's Interesting reports Henley and Brooks did not simply lure the young men to Corll's home, they willingly participated in the torture and killing of the victims. You won't do it!" Once Corll had raped and murdered Aguirre, Henley, Brooks, and Corll buried him at a beach near Houston called High Island. Even after the pandemic began, that did not change. [43] Brooks died of COVID-19 complications in May 2020.[44]. Porras initially set out to interview "anybody on death row," she said. No one seemed impressed by the fact that the unusually large number of runaways in the Heights involved teen-age boys who attended the same schools. When Henley does discuss the victims and his feelings, he speaks with an air of practiced regretfulness and seeming detachment. Their discovery began when they first saw the dead body of Dean Corll. After one hour of deliberation they reached their conclusion:[35] Henley was found guilty and sentenced to six consecutive 99-year terms of imprisonment. But film maker Teana Schiefen Porras managed to break through not only correctional system red tape, but Henley's reluctance, to come away with a filmed interview. Corll dragged the two victims into his bedroom and tied them to his torture board. As he taunted Kerley and Williams, Henley entered the bedroom holding Corlls gun. I didnt have to do nothing but steal. As Corll began to assault and torture Tim Kerley, Henley began to cut away Williams' clothes with the knife Corll had handed him. Before Corll was able to manacle Kerley to his torture board, the pair left Corll's home to purchase sandwiches. He was getting drunk too much, getting too rowdy. Henley is currently housed in Texas' Mark W. Michael Unit. Was Texaswas the countryhoneycombed with the decomposing victims of some hidden force so demonic that it eluded ordinary perception and even memory lay buried? Through extensive networking, she was able to arrange a meeting with Henley, who was at the time in Huntsville's prison. For years, Corll had used Henley and another teen as procurers to lure victims. [5][6], Prior to his leaving high school, Henley became acquainted with a youth one year his senior named David Brooks. But Henley was subsequently convicted of six other murders in which he actively participated. Elmer Wayne Henley and David Brooks were childhood friends, who met and became friends with Dean Corll when they were in their teens. [27]:161 Henley was not charged with the death of Dean Corll, which was ruled self-defense. Because the Behavioral Science Unit expands in. Henley pleaded for his life, promising to participate in the torture and murder of the other youths if Corll released him. He loved his children and his grandchildren, he was sharp., We didnt get along. Families of Corlls victims have actively opposed parole for Henley for decades. Arkansas Online reports Brooks died on May 28, 2020, after contracting COVID-19 in prison. She is the author of Code of Silence: Sexual Misconduct by Federal Judges, the Secret System that Protects Them and the Women who Blew the Whistle. He said, Theyre never going to let me out, and Im OK with that.'. The term serial killer had not yet been invented. I mean, you see people getting strangled on television and it looks easy. Henley was born May 9, 1956, in Houston, Texas, the eldest of four sons born to Elmer Wayne Henley Sr. (September 21, 1938 June 18, 1986) and Mary Pauline Henley (ne Weed) (born May 4, 1937). In 1994, at the suggestion of a Louisiana art dealer, Henley began to paint as a hobby, in part as a means of generating income for himself and his mother. I had Dean in a corner, see, and he told me, You wont kill me. I shot himcoollyuntil I ran out of bullets. "I thought I was looking at Hannibal Lector," she said of her first meeting with Henley. In July 1974, Elmer Wayne Henleys trial began in San Antonio. The footage played several times on KPRC-TV's local news and was picked up for nationwide broadcast by NBC Nightly News that evening.[23]. The interview, along with other extensively compiled footage, comprises "Decisions and Visions," an hourlong documentary produced by Silver Rock Productions, an Oak Ridge North-based film company. [7] Initially, Henley was oblivious to the true extent of Corll's and Brooks' relationship. Henley woke to find Corll placing handcuffs upon his wrists,[1]:100,101 Kerley and Williams had each been bound and gagged and lay alongside Henley on the floor. Read this book and help me make up for the things I was too ignorant to teach you when I was in my twenties. Four days before his death, Dean telephoned his mother in Colorado and told her he was in trouble, feared he was losing his mind, and might commit suicide. [14], On March 24, Henley, in the company of Corll and Brooks, persuaded an 18-year-old friend of his named Frank Aguirre to accompany him to Corll's home on the promise of smoking marijuana with the trio. So Corll not only provided an addressa curious sense of belonging to his fictitious crime ringhe was also an inspiration, an intimation that life held some mystery beyond the Heights. While he insisted it was only meant to be a night of fun, not a night of torture and murder, this seems nave on Henleys part. As he did so, Williams lifted her head and asked Henley, "Is this for real?" Dad was always beating up on my little brothers. Henley eventually killed Corll and then confessed his crimes to police. Dean searched for a climax he never found, says Henley. As they made their way further into the house, investigators found a catalog of disturbing items, including Corlls torture board, handcuffs, and various tools. Henley was charged with six counts of murder and Brooks with four counts. Henley replied in the affirmative and Williams then asked Henley whether he intended to "do anything about it," upon which Henley grabbed the pistol Corll had laid on a bedside table and ordered Corll to stop what he was doing, shouting, "You've gone far enough, Dean! [Texas Monthly, April 1976 edition p. 124], Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. & Dean Corll Documentary Clip, List of serial killers in the United States, List of serial killers by number of victims, "The Houston Mass Murders: What Really Happened", "Houston Finds Murder Ring a Random, Enigmatic Intrusion", "Dean Corll and Elmer Wayne Henley: Houston's most notorious serial killers By Chris Hanson", "Woman's 11-Year Search for Son Ends in Morgue", "Police News Reporter "Identifies" Houston Mass Murder Victim Bodies to be Exhumed", "2 Texas Youths File Pleas of Not Guilty In Mass Slayings (abstract)", Offender Information Detail Henley, Elmer Wayne Jr, "David Brooks, accomplice in Houston Mass Murders, dies at 65 of COVID-19", "Sentenced to life in prison for one of society's most heinous mass murders, it's all Elmer Wayne Henley has. Huffine pointed out that the video's purpose was to encourage parents and children to become more aware of their surroundings. Eventually he calmed down and would give the two teenagers alcohol and drugs. Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr. interview on episode of 48 Hours The Ghoul Can't Help It 272 subscribers Subscribe 42K views 3 years ago Very solemn and sober interview with Dean Corll's teenaged. His mother moved to Colorado, but this time Corll didnt go with her. If you support this mission, we need your help. Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr. (born May 9, 1956) is a convicted American serial killer, incarcerated in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) system. Forty-five years ago this August, Houston's most notorious serial killer met his end. Corll was known throughout the community as the Candy Man, as his parents owned a candy company. He already has begun a social media campaign to ask others to contact the board to oppose Henleys release. He is known for his distinctive voice and his ability to convey emotion through his voice. Henley unequivocally stated that since the winter of 1971, he had actively participated in the abductions and, later, the murders of the victims. reds and greens. Texas has the nations largest prison population, with more than 140,000 people incarcerated in 2022. We report on vital issues from politics to education and are the indispensable authority on the Texas scene, covering everything from music to cultural events with insightful recommendations. Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr is currently serving six life sentences for participating in a murder, rape, and torture ring when he was a teenager. His homosexuality played second fiddle to this aura of experience and latent power, as viewed in the boys narrow perspective. Daniel Vaughn is the countrys first barbecue editor, and he has eaten more barbecue than you have. [36] He was tried for a second time in June 1979 and was again convicted of six murders and again sentenced to six life terms although to run concurrently rather than consecutively. Emily McCullar is a senior editor covering pop culture, news, and Texas history. The lawyer and his young partners want to sell Henleys life story to recover their fees, and they see this exclusive interview as a kind of literary screen test. Henley is currently housed in Texas' Mark W. Michael Unit. Both were later buried in the boat shed. Henleys mother told police that Dean Corll was like a father to Wayne. Corll was himself the product of quarreling parents, who divorced when he was young, remarried, divorced again; his mother traveled around the South in a trailer, started a candy business with the help of a dutiful son. But through all these years, one of his victims remains unidentified. Serial killer Henley grants interview Dec. 27, 2001 Between 1970 and 1973, Dean Corll, aided by David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley Jr., killed 26 young men in the Heights area of. Save on AeroGarden indoor herb growing kits at Amazon, Create a bonsai tree out of bricks with this $40 LEGO set, Dyson's air purifying headphones have finally arrived, Preorder 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' today, There are a ton of great patio furniture sets on sale right now, Beat the heat with this discounted Lasko tower fan from Amazon, Apple deal: The 2023 MacBook Pro Laptop is under $2,000 on Amazon, New Texas bill would charge electric car drivers $200 annual fee, These 8 Denver-area hikes each offer something unique, Why this museum should be on every Houston kid's must-visit list, Elon Musk describes Starship flight as 'roughly what I expected', Here's how much you have to make to be 'middle class' in Houston. I am sorry that I decided to leave but I just had to go. Corll stayed with her through it all, obtaining a hardship discharge from the Army to return to the family candy business, this time in Houston. He never really impressed me as masculine unless he was lifting something. When Porras first met with Henley, according to the Houston Chronicle, she said, I thought I was looking at Hannibal Lecter., As the interview went on, she relaxed more, realizing Henley was not as terrifying as she initially thought. One of them is his. In the years since, a judge told her to forget about that night, her family abandoned her, she's had death threats and she's never talked about any of it -- until now. We rely on the generosity of our readers who believe that this work is important. [7] On one occasion, in an apparent test of character, Corll asked Henley if he would be willing to kill if required, to which Henley replied, "Yes. [15] Henley later claimed that he attempted to talk Corll out of raping and killing Aguirre, but Corll adamantly refused. Elmer Wayne Henley is a convicted serial killer involved in a series of murders in Houston. This exhibition drew outrage from some victims' relatives. Initially, Henley was an excellent student at school;[1]:201 but after his parents' divorce he took a series of menial part-time jobs to help his mother with household finances, and his grades dropped sharply. To appease Corll, Henley told him they could rape and kill Kerley and Williams together. The state Board of Pardons and Paroles approved 76 persons for release in 201959 terminally ill and 17 already assigned to long-term care. As the episode of "Mindhunter" explores, Henley would help lure victims to the 33-year-old serial killer Dean A. Corll. However, he eventually confessed that he, Corll, and Brooks, worked together to kill at least 28 young men and boys. Taylor Prewitt is the newsletter editor for Texas Monthly. The 2023 NFL Draft runs April 2729 live from Kansas City, Missouri. medically recommended intensive supervision. Course Corrections: The Return of Prison Education, Clarence Brandley: Unjustly Convicted, Overdue for Justice, Mapping the Legacy of Prison Hunger Strikes in Texas, Last Dance with Ann Richards: Best Texas Books of 2022. One of those killed was 13-year-old. As Corll continued to advance upon him, Henley shot him a further two times in the shoulder, upon which Corll staggered out of the room where the teenagers were held. On October 3, Henley assisted Corll in the abduction and murder of two Heights boys named Wally Simoneaux and Richard Hembree. Henley was offered the same fee as Brooks ($200) for any boy whom he could bring to Corll.[10][11]. Henley will shortly be sentenced to 594 years by a San Antonio court, but that is a formality. All rights reserved. It was a promise she kept, until now.. So he started getting up and he was like, Youre not going to do anything to me,' she continued. On October 8, Henley and Brooks were brought to court to face a formal arraignment. Corll slumped naked against the wall, dead. Trial and Conviction. The assembled jury also heard the testimony of a youth named Billy Ridinger, who had been abducted by Corll, Henley and Brooks in 1972 and who testified as to his torture and abuse at the hands of the trio. Its not. He does NOT deserve to have any compassion for any illness as my brother was not even treated with basic humanity.. Elmer Wayne Henley Jr, a gray-haired 66-year-old serving six life sentences for his role in Houston's most notorious serial killings, is requesting compassionate . [45], A pen pal with whom Henley has corresponded has also organized several exhibitions of his artwork. The Astrodomes Decline From Eighth Wonder to Eighth Blunder of the World, Matthew McConaughey Is Monetizing His Whole Vibe. Bail was set at $100,000. He lacked a male figure in his life who would treat him with dignity and respect and he would end up finding this in Dean Corll. As a result of Henley killing Corll and Brooks dying in prison in 2020 from COVID-19, Henley is the only one of the trio still alive. YouTubeSome of the torture devices found in the home of Dean Corll. Between 1970 and 1973, Dean Corll, aided by David Owen Brooks and Elmer Wayne Henley Jr., killed 26 young men in the Heights area of Houston. He told them that Corll had been killing boys for the past two-and-a-half years and burying many of them at Southwest Boat Storage, according to the Houston Chronicle. August 10, 2022, 11:21 AM, CDT. Corll agreed. He overreacted, out of meanness. A much more heavyset Kemper was seen in this extended interview footage with French true crime expert Stphane Bourgoin. Only when Porras asks specifics about the crimes does Henley refuse to answer. The four got high and drank beer in the living room, but Corll was apparently livid with Henley for bringing a girl to his house. By July 25, 1973, Henley had assisted in leading more than two dozen boys to horrific deaths at the hands of Dean Corll and himself. Corll agreed and untied Henley, then carried Kerley and Williams into his bedroom and tied them to opposite sides of his plywood torture board: Kerley on his stomach; Williams on her back. If I were you, I wouldnt want to know., Houston Heights is a seedy, lower-middle-class enclave with horizons limited to once-fashionable homes divided into low-rent apartments, and guarded by pickups on concrete blocks. Dean Corll obscured his crimes by forcing his victims to send postcards to their families, explaining that they left town willingly and were safe. When I interviewed serial killer, Elmer Wayne Henley, Jr., in October 2010 and discovered that a second victim of the "Houston Mass Murders," Mark Scott, 17, abducted on April 20, 1972, had. Get a 42-inch oscillating fan for 15% off with this deal. In interviews, Henley has stated that he suffers from a severe color deficiency in his eyesight that makes it impossible for him to clearly distinguish between Dean was a personal friend, as well as a source of income. When asked how he felt about killing his friend and mentor, Elmer Wayne Henley told Texas Monthly he did exactly what Dean Corll trained him to do. According to Texas Monthly, Henley and Brooks began roaming the Houston Heights neighborhood, smoking marijuana, drinking beer, and shooting pool. When they questioned Henley about the items, he completely broke down. Phillips knows Brian Falcon and Mike Huffine of Silver Rock. Image: Netflix. The couple divorced in 1970 when Henley was 14. Henley's motherwho worked as a cashier at a parking lot[4]retained custody of her four sons. Both survived, and Corlls murder was ruled justifiable homicide. Her work is featured in CNN's The Wrong Man (2015) about the innocence claims of executed offender Ruben Cantu and the six-part A&E series on the victims of a 1970s serial killer, The Eleven, (2017). Those victims also were his friends, classmates or neighbors: Frank Aguirre, a 17-year-old high school senior only weeks away from graduation; his former junior high classmate Johnny Delome, 16; Charles Cobble, 17; and Marty Jones, 18, who shared an apartment blocks from Henleys home; Homer Garcia, a 15-year-old who took drivers ed classes with Henley; and Billy Lawrence, another 15-year-old who was apparently held captive and abused longer than any other victim, according to trial testimony. He had brought enough people to Corll to know what would happen. How Teenager Elmer Wayne Henley Became The Accomplice Of One Of Americas Most Prolific Serial Killers, Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. gives an interview to. Based on the real cases of former special agent John E. Douglas, Netflix's Mindhunter features chilling dramatized interviews with serial killers. Elmer Wayne Henley Jr. (born May 9, 1956) is a convicted American serial killer and painter incarcerated in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) system. The fact that he did work, wasnt a wild drunk, got along with kids and people in generalthats what started it.. Although some of the victims' families were suspicious of the postcards, authorities were reluctant to investigate the disappearance of boys who appeared to be runaways. Along with Robert F. Kennedy assassin Sirhan Sirhan and serial killer Elmer Wayne Henley, Kemper is one of the subjects interviewed in this morbid 1982 Japanese-American documentary. If theres a common theme among the boys it is rootlessness. The next day, Corll paid Henley $200. From what Wayne says, there may be more bodies out there. He gestured vaguely in the direction of the Gulf of Mexico, where in August 1973, police discovered the remains of seventeen teen-age boys beneath the dirt floor of a boat shed, wrapped in plastic shrouds and laced with lime, and subsequently dug up ten more along a lonely stretch of beach. At the age of 15, Henley dropped out of high school. [16] Corll rented a boat shed on Silver Bell Street in southwest Houston (where police eventually found eight bodies) [17] Later, Corll and Brooks told Henley that his childhood friend, David Hilligiest, had also been killed and buried in that same boat shed along with his swimming companion Gregory Malley Winkle.[12]. Elmer Wayne Henley, 17, (R), accused of 6 of 27 Houston mass murders, is escorted to District Court by Chief Bexar County Deputy Rudy Garza, (L). Henley says his father also beat him and once fired a pistol at him. She has made commercials and short films in the past. Williams was just 15 when she. [39][40][41]:7[39][42], David Brooks was tried for the June 1973 murder of Billy Ray Lawrence in February 1975. By the time Richard Kepner had been killed and buried at High Island, Henley had assisted in the abduction and murder of a minimum of nine teenage boys. The compassionate release process, which is confidential, first requires the board to consider whether Henleys request is based on a legitimate medical condition or other hardship covered under the law. Although I have conducted hundreds of interviews, I am uneasy in the presence of this high-school dropout from Houston Heights. At one point during the trial, Mullican testified that Henley had informed him that in order to restrain the youths; he, Brooks and Corll had "handcuffed (the victims) to the board and sometimes to a wall with their mouths taped so they couldn't make any noise".[33]. I wanted to find out what his deal was. Please notify us by email that the article will be republished at, Supreme Court had declared to be cruel and unusual punishment. Sometimes it takes two people half an hour.. In the beginning he seemed quiet and in the background, and that made me curious. He does NOT deserve to have any compassion for any illness as my brother was not even treated with basic humanity, she wrote. Henley fired a round at Corll, hitting him in the forehead. However, Henley is not a typical aging and ailing Texas prisoner. Henley is the compleat American punk, the kid your mother warned you against becoming if you let smoking stunt your growth. Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002. Looking back, I can see he was carrying a burden he was trying to. I stayed around because there was no reason for me to leave. Elmer is one of the most respected voice actors in the business. [26] The youth, who vanished on July 12, 1973, had died of four gunshot wounds fired from a rifle, whereas each other victim of the Houston Mass Murders had either been strangled or killed with the .22 caliber pistol Henley had used to kill Dean Corll. Corll, on the other hand, did not make fun of Brooks. In the spring of 1973, Henley attempted to enlist in the U.S. Navy, but his application was rejected on June 28 due to the fact he had dropped out of high school andalthough a later intelligence test would reveal his IQ to be 126[20]possessed a limited education. Transcript of letter Billy Lawrence was forced to write to his father by Corll.[21]. Corll dragged Aguirre to his bedroom and secured him to his torture board where he was raped, tortured and strangled before being buried at High Island Beach. Much of that first year was spent driving aimlessly about the Heights in Corlls car, drinking beer and smoking marijuana and planning petty theft. Excerpted from The Texans, by James Conaway,to be published this spring by Alfred A. Knopf. When Elmer Wayne Henley contacted authorities that August day in 1973, he initially stated that he killed only one man Dean Corll. Dean Corll, known as the Candy Man, was. From the moment Brooks and Corll met, Corll took advantage of Brooks vulnerability: Brooks father was a bully who constantly chastised his son for being weak.
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